Coming to terms with life’s constant change is one of the greatest challenges that we face.  It is interesting to note, however, that there are many areas of life in which we often have little or no trouble accepting change.  Sometimes we welcome it with open arms; at other times we may find it bittersweet.  Many parents experience the bittersweet aspect of change as they watch their child board the kindergarten bus on the first day of school.  The change of seasons is an example of a change that we often take in stride, accepting it as a natural and even welcome part of life.

There is another level of change, however, that affects us differently when it occurs, because it touches us differently.  Changes of this kind are the ones that involve a significant part of our personal world.

We know intellectually that all good things eventually come to an end, but the fact that they come to an end is outside of our control.  It isn’t left to us.  Albert Einstein is credited with the statement, “Nothing happens until something moves.”  There is a lot packed into this short sentence.  If it were up to us, certain things in our life would never change.  For example, the people we love would never die.

When significant change occurs in our lives, no one consults us before allowing it to take place.  But if we are attentive when “something significant moves” in our world, we will eventually come to realize that the universe is very compassionate, seeming to care very much about our response.  This is seen in God’s silence, patiently waiting for our response, not only to the many changes that continually take place in our personal world but also to the many opportunities for growth that these changes present to us.

Although we sometimes feel left alone to face life’s changes, God promises to be with us always.  It is through the ongoing process of change happening in our life, followed by our response, that we discover “who we are” in God’s world.  When we are able to open ourselves to this process, our life becomes integrated more and more into God’s larger world.  We will eventually discover our proper place in it and find inner healing at a very deep level.  We will become aware of our connection with the Creator in a way we never imagined and see life and everything in it in a completely new way.

All of this will come about because God cares enough to “allow something to move” in our world.  It is here, in the ongoing process of change, that the faithfulness and mercy of God’s promise to lead us touches our lives in a profound and meaningful way.

Connecting Point:

All living things change.  It is the way of the universe.  It is God’s way of working in our individual lives as well.  Think about the way you feel when change happens in your life.  Do you always feel the same, or do different types of change affect you differently?  The more you are able to see change, all change, as God working in your life, the more you will be able to see your life as a journey of continuous growth toward what it means to be human and what it means to love.

Prayer:

God of goodness and peace, your love for me and for all of creation is the only thing that does not change.  The universe has been changing for countless years.  I have been changing since the time I was conceived in my mother’s womb.  Help me to make peace with the constant change that is a part of life.  Help me to realize that you are always with me waiting in the midst of the change to give me something new and good.  In times of difficult, tragic change help me to hope, trusting when I can’t understand, that when all else fails you are still God.  Help me to wait for your love, mercy, and wisdom to be revealed to me.  Amen.

This is an excerpt from Living at God’s Speed, Healing in God’s Time, by Charles W. Sidoti